The Lost Skellington
by E White
Summary: In Halloween Town,a rumour is spreading about an unknown heir. Back in the "real" world, human Phrixos Caber sits waiting in an asylum; scrutinised by Jack, haunted by his own mind.
1. Laura :: The Heir

The holidays can get really boring.Plot bunnies attacked me whilst on deviantart and this monstrosity was born.Please don't get mad at me if I don't finish this one,and for my avid Labyrinth readers,I'm sorry it's taking so long,guys.BTW,this will probably deserve it's rating,so don't get mad if I got it wrong.

**I do not own The Nightmare Before Christmas,or any of it's rights and all that jazz.**

Enjoy!

* * *

"PHRIXOS!"

Phrixos awoke with a start, unaware of the bulky guard stood above him. His eyes stung from the harsh light of the bare bulb, and the straitjacket hadn't assured a restful night.

"Jack! Someone for you." He cried

"Huh?" said the boy absentmindedly. He did as best he could t brush the black hair from his eyes, but it just fell back again. Looking around the cell, he saw a woman, not too old, with a briefcase and suit on. Very formal.

"Jack Caber, I presume." She said to him. She peered at the boy over her glasses, but Phrixos stared back defiantly and replied.

"No, _Phrixos_ Caber, actually."

The woman shot a glance at the guard who rolled his eyes,unknown to Phrixos.

"I'll call you Jack for the time being. Now tell me, how old are you?"

"17 years and 6 months."

"Good and why are you here?"

These questions were making him feel uneasy, despite the woman's attempt at a kind tone.

"Why? Did you know my parents?" he asked hopefully, eyes lighting up.

His mother had passed away just a year ago, and this had caused Phrixos to…lose his mind as the guards and doctors said. He had never known his dad, but he was sure that he had inherited his looks. Tall and skinny, dark haired with impressive green eyes, as opposed to his mother's short full build, dark blue eyes and strawberry-blond, curly hair.

"No," she said softly, "I'm here to find out why you've been put here and to help you get out."

Phrixos mumbled something incoherent, to which the woman asked him to repeat.

"I'm a dangerous schizophrenic, and I have hydrophobia, too." He added with a smirk.

"My name's Laura Manwood. I'm a sort of social worker. But I don't think that this-", she shot another glare at Phrixos' guard," –is the right environment for a young man such as yourself."

These words bounced off him with no effect. There had been other like Laura, people promising to take him away from the asylum, but after his schizophrenia kicked in, there was no telling what he would do. Once, before he had been brought here, Phrixos had attempted to tear his skin off his left arm, insisting that there was something stuck under there. And just last Halloween, he had been found in a deserted house with the bodies of two teenagers. Despite his cries that he was innocent, they had charged him with murder, and sent to the Youth Courts. After one of his fits, they had moved Phrixos to the asylum, where he had been for just under 5 months now.

Laura touched his arm gently and he looked up at her, emotionless.

"Jack?"

He remained silent.After a few minutes,Laura gave up hope and told the guard that she would be back to speak with him on Monday.Her agreed and she left after saying a small goodbye to the boy,who ignored her stubbornly.

The clang of the door rang in his ears,made him blink.

"You were well behaved for her,you know." he heard the guard say softly.He wasn't really that bad.

"Thanks. I do try." Phrixos replied testily.

He sighed and slumped further against the wall.The coolness on his back from it reminded him that it was the beginning of autumn outside, he should really take a walk. As long as he didn't start raving, the guards allowed him to do that.

Yeah right.

In Halloween Town, something was wrong. Jack was in his study, pouring over books about history and the like. Just to distract his mind from wandering.

News had come around Halloween Town about their Pumpkin King's secret, a long lost heir hidden in another world. Some insisted they were an elf in Christmas Town, while other said they were right under their noses.

Jack couldn't bear to hear the rumours, and wouldn't say whether they were true or not, for fear of dislike towards him. He wouldn't deny them, but they had already started to secretly search for them there in their town.

Jack closed the books and looked out towards the fountain. The Corpse Kid was being herded by his mother to…the Town Hall. Jack let out a sigh and made his way down the study staircase and out of his home.

After a day of searching, and no luck, Mayor had called a meeting for the citizens to share ideas and guesses.

"Well, I think he's –"started one of the vampires, who was promptly interrupted by Mayor

"Now, now, we don't want more rumours at the moment. Has anyone actually _seen _someone?" Nobody said a word, merely gazed around hoping someone would say something.

"Or seen anything?" he sighed.

Once again, the vampire piped up.

"I say he's in another world. We should be looking for him someplace else."

"And how exactly should we go about that?" demanded the Wolf Man.

"Erm…well…" he replied, lost for words

"I agree. If they _aren't _here, then what should we do?" asked a Witch Sister

"We should leave this rumour well alone!" came a loud voice from the back of the Hall.Oh dear.

As Jack Skellington passed through the row, all the Towners hung their heads and averted their eyes. They were truly guilty of spreading the rumour, all of them. Jack couldn't land the blame on one of them, could he?

"But if you're all so curious to know the truth, then here it is."

This was totally unexpected. Most didn't know what to make of it; the rest listened carefully to Jack's next words.


	2. Confession :: School

Okay, second chapter,and this is probably the quickest chapter I've ever written.

P.S If you want to write like this, just listen to too much Evanescence, eat wa-a-ay too much mango and catch a cold (sniff). Enjoy Phrixos' insanity, guys.

* * *

"So yes, I do have an heir, to stop your rumours and whispers behind my back." Jack was rather disappointed with his citizens' behaviour. But at the same time amused, wickedly. Mumbles and murmurs filled the Hall after his speech before someone said from the back row:

"And where is the boy then, Jack?"

Sadly, he recognised the voice, but mumbled in reply,

"The…the Human World. No older than 16, somewhere in England, I suspect."

Even more Towners whispered at this, whilst their Pumpkin King descended behind the dusty black curtain. A solitary bat noticed his arrival and took off through the open window, illuminated by the bright full moon. Jack stood silently next to the window, holding the backs of his arms, contemplating. There was no way he was going to find the boy now, what with everyone aware of him and it being the 30th of September. The next weeks were devoted to the Halloween festivities, preparing for their big moment. But maybe it would keep his mind off the boy. Just maybe.

"Jack?" came that voice, the solitary questioning voice.

He sighed, shoulders slumping defeatedly.

"Sally." He turned to look at her, standing beside the curtains, her long red hair falling elegantly down her back. Her eyes, filled with the most fragile mix of sadness and disbelief, were wide and painful to look at. He averted his eyes to a stack of ink blotted music sheets resting on the piano's top precariously.

"I didn't mean to…It wasn't…" he sighed again "I'm sorry, Sally."

Her small hand on his shoulder, exerting no pressure at all. He didn't know what she felt. Sadness? Anger? Resent? Jack really didn't know what he felt, either. Emptiness filled his bones, making him tired and longing for his study chair, left alone to think and read, lost in his own labyrinth of thoughts. To sleep.

Without a word, he walked away from her and through the Hall under the eyes of the Towners, but stopped outside the Town Gates. Tall and steely, they made just enough space for most people to squeeze through. Jack went through without a thought, and disappeared into the graveyard.

* * *

Laura Manwood was back the next day, accompanied by that briefcase full of papers. From reading a small heading on one corner, Phrixos reckoned it was to do with him. After it being presented to him, he realised it was a release paper, complete with his real name.

_Phrixos Jack Caber. Born 31.10.88. Known relatives: Jenna Caber (mother), father unknown. London, England._

"You are officially free to leave, Jack." She had said cheerfully with that strained smile again. But to Phrixos, this brought him back to reality with a sharp realisation. He was alone again, back in the cruel real world. Alone.

"I've arranged for a room in a boarding school, to finish your education, at Greygrove. With a girl, so sorry." He heard only the words school and girl.

Oh no.

"I can't." was all he said. Laura looked at him strangely, peering over her glasses at his protest.

"I'm afraid you have no choice, Jack."

"_Phrixos_. And I can't. Not there, not anywhere."

She ignored him and went to fetch his guard.

* * *

After five minutes, he was taken out of the normal straitjacket. These changes made Phrixos feel even uneasier than Laura's questions the day before. His arms felt heavy at his sides, and odd. He could feel his schizophrenia hovering at the borders of conciousness, but he ignored it. More important things to worry about. Like people.

The soft autumn breeze on his face felt almost strange, a forgotten thing. It doesn't really matter in an asylum; you're locked inside yourself, bored out of your skull. Well, Phrixos had been anyway. He soon felt cold and small in the street, following Laura to her car. He was considered sane now, and that scared him. Who knew what things he could do would do? The slightest thing could set him off, a harsh sound, heady scent. But what was even more terrifying was Phrixos picturing the things that could happen in his mind's eyes, unable to stop.

So he was grateful when Laura's car shut out the noise and enveloped him in a strange cocoon against the hard world outside its four doors. Watching it fly outside his window was tiring though. His eyelids drooped, lashes obscuring his vision. Sleep took over and blotted out his worries.

* * *

Looking in the mirror, Laura could see the sleeping boy. Just ten miles to go, the roads bombarded with cars coming form work, rushhour. The clock on her dashboard read about six o'clock, damn. They were late.

Another glance at Phrixos, calm and, well, normal. It was actually hard to imagine the stories she had heard about him. Murders, blood. Always unbelievably horrible and gutchurning. But she had heard about the two teenagers on the internet, and that had put Laura on his case. Now here she was, driving the very same boy to his new home.

What had she done?

* * *

It was dark when Phrixos awoke, stiff but oddly comfortable at the same time. Something was wrong. He could hear people talking somewhere. Laura, he recognised her voice again. But where was he? Sitting up, he shivered. In a bed, a small room, no distinguishing features except a collection of photos on the wall, next to another bed. In the bed, someone was sleeping, Phrixos squinting to see their chest moving in the dim light. It was cold.

He huddled further under the sheets on the bed, wrapping his arms around his skinny frame for some likeness of his past 5 months. It seemed uncomfortable to not hold them like that now. Strange.

He turned his head, his black bag next to the bed. Just his old clothes, a few books that various social workers had given him, mostly fantasy. His dear possessions, few as they were. It was the only thing he had left. Except…

A thought flashed in his mind suddenly, where was he?

Phrixos tried to remember what Laura had said, a school. He got up; he was wearing his clothes still, and looked out of the window.

Second floor, far left side of an immense grey building, a few lights on in the other rooms. Didn't look like much of a school to him, but still. Sitting back down on the bed, he noticed a clock on his roommate's bedside table. Twenty-five past twelve, he should get some sleep. Ask questions tomorrow.

He sat holding his forearms, up against the wall on his bed. The coolness against his back reminded once more of the asylum and he drifted into a deep, nightmare-filled sleep.


	3. Kemina :: Libitina

The window was open when Phrixos woke up again. He blinked in the light, unravelling his arms that had been wrapped around his sides. Had to get out of that habit now.

The room's other occupant was gone, and, luckily, it was a Saturday morning. He got up; working the stiffness out of his limbs, sleeping against the wall had to stop too.

Checking for his bag, Phrixos found it in the same place as last night, next to the bed. He pulled open the zipper, revealing its contents. Pausing, he brought out a hardback blue book, his journal. It hadn't been touched since he arrived at the asylum, and it shocked him to read his entries again, it all seemed so simple in writing. But he couldn't drift on these memories too long. Time to update. He fished around for a while, looking for a pencil. Finding one, he got ready to write on the paper, but stopped suddenly. What could he write?

_Hi, just got out of the asylum, in school, oh and by the way, I think I'm gonna have a fit._

Yeah right. Not after the last entry, something about his science project on plants, of all the…

He needed something subtle, yet strong enough to explain his situation.

Phrixos pondered a while longer, then smiled slightly and began to write. His pencil hovered uncertainly sometimes, but never for long. He always had been original in school. Better start making use of it.

A soft knock on the wooden door. Phrixos looked up, his eyes wide in shock. He'd forgotten his room-mate.

"Erm…" he started, but the door opened before he could finish.

A girl, the same age as him or younger, deep red-auburn short hair, large brown-caramel eyes, quite small but not so lean, with small square glasses. She blinked a few times at the by huddled in one corner of the room, then smiled.

"Hi, I guess you're Jack."

Phrixos rolled his eyes, not here too.

"Phrixos. Why does everybody call me that?" he muttered quietly. The girl laughed and answered.

"Laura told me to call you that until you told me otherwise. So, Phrixos?"

He nodded, stuffing the journal back into the back with disastrous results. Paper went flying up, his pencil case fell out one side and he heard the zip strain to hold all its contents.

"And you are…"

She came over, and looked at the overloaded black bag.

"Kemina Johan. Help?"

"What?" he asked stupidly, now pushing it to try and close the ever open zip, not looking at Kemina in the slightest. Suddenly, it exploded. Or at least, it seemed to.

The side split, and everything inside was pushed out the rip, spreading across the carpet floor. Phrixos moaned and rubbed his eyes, annoyed. Not now, please just leave me alone.

"You okay?" she asked, leaning over to look at him.

He shook his head slightly, but sighed and opened his eyes. Kemina was picking up most of the stuff, a neat pile here, and the two pencil cases there. Woah, she was neat. Neat freakish.

"Sorry about that," she said, reading his mind and blushing. "I've got a habit of clearing things up. Crazy huh?"

Phrixos cracked. He started giggling at first then, laughed, before leaning back against the wall. He instinctively wrapped his arms around his sides again, before looking back up at his room-mate, who was currently staring at Phrixos like he had two heads.

Yep, thanks Laura, dump me with the lunatic.

* * *

Halloween Town was all a fluster. Jack Skellington hadn't been seen in over a day, and the town's mood had changed from busy to worried. Only 29 days to go, and the Mayor had to still go through his plans with the Pumpkin King. He had started to write them out countess times, just in case Jack wasn't there before Halloween. You never know, he said, something might have happened to him.

* * *

Jack, meanwhile, was wandering endlessly through the cemetery, entering the old and forgotten crypts in need of something. Or fruitless searching, he sat down in the arms of an angel headstone, housing the words,

_Lina Suzi, died 1998, cause of death: Skellington._

This didn't cheer him up one bit, yet brought his duties back in a flash, he was needed in Town. But he couldn't go, not just yet. Too many places he hadn't looked in, not enough time.

* * *

One more day passed, and a yawning Pumpkin King set to work at in the old cemetery, home to the infamous Spiral Hill. It was afternoon and the sun hung in a clear sky, when Jack found her. In one of the deepest crypts, an old woman, with wiry white hair and a face hidden beneath thousand of wrinkles, sat at a rotten, wooden table and snoring loudly.

He strode over, and tapped her on the shoulder lightly. The old woman jerked a little, but didn't wake up. He pushed her arm, same reaction. In the end, Jack ended up screaming in her ear, to which her answer was,

"Waa…h? Who's there? You…you come in 'ere an' I'll give you such a …oh, it's …erm…" she stuttered, not knowing his name,

"Jack Skellington."

"Ah yes! Ha, Jack Skellington, you're the…erm, the…"

Jack rolled his eyes, or rather his empty sockets.

"Pumpkin King."

She smiled, her face crinkling up like old cloth, and her beady black eyes peered from her face like beetles.

"Jack, it's been long, long, long time since I saw you, look how much you've grown!"

This left him stumped, as the last time he had seen her was, well, last Halloween. But that didn't matter right now.

"Yes, Libitina. I need a favour."

"Ah, for you, anything, you know. I'll be of whatever assistance I can, these days!"

She then muttered under her breath,

"Unless it has to do with those…those Boogie's boys. Those little…"

"No, Libitina, it doesn't have anything to do with them. It has to do with…well…the Caber boy." He finished, averting his eyes. Libitina knew all about Phrixos, she was the one that advised Jack to leave him in the Human World to protect both his mother and Halloween Town.

"But Jack, the Caber boy?" she asked uncertainly. "I thought we thought it was best to-"

"I know!" he shouted uncharacteristically. He cursed then said on a far lighter tone,

"I know. But something happened. The Towners know about…Phrixos, I couldn't stop them"

He slumped down onto another chair beside Libitina, his back arched and his knees bent in front of him because of its tiny legs. She could only have been 3 feet tall, though. The woman patted his arm sympathetically, smiling again.

"It's alright. I'll do what I can for him."

Jack turned to face her, his skull expressionless, blank. But then he smiled grimly, and sighed. Being Pumpkin King isn't easy, and he showed it now. Libitina got up, not becoming any taller in standing up, and hobbled over to another room in the crypt. It seemed that she had given it extensions, or at least built it that way for living. Her frail and tinny voice rang out and echoed on the stone walls,

"I'll make some tea."


	4. The House :: Scars

On the other side of the portal, Libitina hobbled through the streets, an old woman out for a walk just before 3 p.m. It was rather deserted for a Saturday, and the only people she saw were a lady with a teensy dog who turned her nose up at her, a group of young boys who looked at Libitina once and then looked away, and a young couple who ignored her completely.

After a few blocks, she stopped outside an old, derelict-looking house, complete with withered lavender bushes and wrought-iron fences. It was dark and gloomy compared to the rest of the street, but Libitina smiled, her face seeming to fold in on itself from the wrinkles. She went through the gates and pushed open its massive oak door with unexpected ease, before slipping away into the shadowed, cobweb ridden hall.

* * *

"Thanks again."

Kemina looked up, blinking at Phrixos beside her. They were both sat on her bed, each holding a cup of hot chocolate, despite the sun beating through the room's open window, and she had been telling him about Greygrove. To him, school still held bad memories, although Kemina had assured him that's he would stay with him all weekend.

"Huh?"

He blushed and repeated,

"Thanks for letting me share a room with you. I am a boy, after all."

"No biggie. Normally, it's not allowed but, I mean, there's no space anymore. Greygrove's been one of the favourite boarding school for a this sharing'll just be temporary, y'know." She took of sip from her mug and shrugged indifferently. A small smile crossed Phrixos' face, hating the silence that hung between them. Kemina was stirring her chocolate with a finger, whereas Phrixos hadn't touched his, but didn't want to say anything to imply that he though it was poisoned or anything. He was jumpy and kept glancing at Kemina, who made an effort to ignore him, but it wasn't helping. Where had this come from? He could be so rude at times, and wasn't big on politeness anyway, despite his mother's best attempts.

"So, erm…Kemin-"

"Kim." She interrupted promptly, which resulted in a blank look from him. She smile and said "Kemina's a mouthful, sorry."

"Kim, so…how old are you?"

"I'm 17." she said quickly, then added with a sigh,"Well, _nearly_. I'll be 17 in a month and a half. I'm the youngest in the class. The year, even. You?"

"17 6 months ago."

She glanced up again at him, who was staring into space, his face oddly blank. His normally clear green eyes were dark and creeping her out.

"You're with me then?"

"Yeah, only just. I always was the oldest in my classes."

Kim chuckled, and noted:

"Some-one won't be pleased about that." After a confused look from Phrixos, she explained,

"There's a lad in our year, Gethin, likes to think he's all older than us and macho, for want of a better term. He won't be happy to see that you're older than him. And taller too!"

They laughed, Kim enjoying the moment, Phrixos laughing uneasily at picturing this Gethin.

"And you're so thin!" She looked enviously at Phrixos' skinny frame, his arms hugging his knees and the green mug. Then down at her own figure, which seemed gigantic in comparison, but Kim never was a size 0 anyway.

"I wish I was that thin." She muttered the last sentence with an undisguised hint of envy.

"No, you wouldn't." he answered bluntly.

She stared at him, her brown eyes showing every ounce of disbelief she could muster.

"Wanna bet?!"

"You wouldn't." He mumbled again, almost whispering, and sighed shortly.

"I've got brittle bones, and my skin scars really easy."

Upon saying this, Phrixos put the mug down finally and crossed his arms against the grey T-shirt he was wearing. He bit down on his lip, and Kim guessed –rather cleverly-that he was hiding something.

"Really?" She was watching his face with anticipation, hoping that he would show whatever it was. Kim was nosy like that.

He glanced up at her, her hair curling around her ears and framing her heart-shaped face in reddish glints. Slightly, he loosened his arms and held them out to looked at them once, then bit down on whatever she was going to say, her eyes widening behind her glasses.

On his pale flesh, there were thick, pink scars running all the way from above his elbow, down to the end of his wrists. They hadn't been _too_ deep, but the scars that they'd left were rather unpleasant. Phrixos gazed down with slight boredom, but let her feel their track, their smoothness compared to the unmarked skin.

"How…when?" She asked simply.

He considered not answering, but said

"Not long, maybe 6 months. More."

She turned his arms over, checking the other side. Not a mark.

"How?"

Phrixos hardened, and sat back into his position, and pulled the t-shirt sleeves roughly, as if they could cover it up. Kim drew back, rather disappointed, but wary of how his mood had changed so suddenly. It was like watching a cat turn from docile to aggressive in a flash. But Laura had warned her not to push Phrixos too hard; there was no doubt that she'd leave him a while.

"Sorry, Jack. I didn't…I mean…" She left the sentence hanging, and stood up. Kim made to go out, but turned back and gathered up their mugs before closing the door behind her with a satisfying _click_.

Phrixos was caught up in his thoughts, not focusing on anything and feeling his consciousness become more and more distant. He felt that crazy feeling when he let schizophrenia take hold. The sun was bright and lit up the room, making it seem cheery and optimistic despite his dark mood. His eyes prickled, tears welling up there. Phrixos stayed stock-still, letting the tears flow, like the countless times before.

It was always going to be a tender subject.


	5. Don't Need No Education :: Bathats?

N.B: The classes used in the fic are based on the French system. If Phrixos were in a secondary school, then his class would be 2, then 1 then final year with his graduating tests. As he's the oldest in the class, he's 17 and a half as he was born at the end of the last school classifying year (noted as September - August and not January - December) while the rest are 16-17 depending. Kim says she's almost 17, which means she'll be born in November or December to be in the same class as Phrixos.

Just to clarify some things. ^^

* * *

The next Monday came round far quicker than Phrixos had wished. He woke up with a sore head and a mood, though why he couldn't explain quite why. Kim had been up for a while, and came to wake him up promptly.

"Wake up."

A groan.

"Hey, come on, wake up." And a shove.

Another groan, with a languid arm movement resembling a lazy slap through the air.

"Phrix! Wake up!" And she pulled the covers off. Which Phrixos put back.

The last straw was when she opened the windows, pulled the covers off and slammed the door once. He curled up into a ball and murmured that he was sick and couldn't get up, of course Kim just shoved him again. He moaned once, then obliged and got up.

He didn't even get to eat before she pushed him out of the door with his books and bag. Standing in the doorway with a gormless look on his face and she came out right after him. Yawning as loudly as he could, he caught sight of himself in the windows. His hair was a great raven mess, his green eyes dull and half-closed, and his school shirt collar flicked up like some crappy vampire Halloween costume. When he stopped, Kim carried on walking for a while, then did a double-take and turned back for him.

"C-mon, Phrixos. We'll be late." she said, tugging his arm like some kid to get her mother to come look at the toys in another shop. He ignored her and put a hand through his hair, he was going to make it look like it was ruffled and messed up on purpose. She tutted and pulled him away into the steadily filling corridors.

* * *

First hour was, on the whole, uneventful. He spent it in the receptionist's office, sitting sheepishly on a plastic chair while she made a few phone calls and got out lots of paper folders. One he recognised, Laura's, the one she'd brought to the asylum. The Student Head Director studied for a while, before turning her attention to the boy.

"Jack Caber?" she asked after reading it through again.

'Jack' nodded, better not confuse anyone yet.

"You'll be in the first year, then. But that will be sorted out promptly, I suppose."

He had no idea what she was talking about and just stayed silent.

He remembered something then, he thought it was lyrics, or a song. It was something his mother had had on at the house constantly.

_Only dimly aware of a certain unease in the air…

* * *

_

The next hour was different, if you could use that word for something so opposite.

Class introduction.

Ick.

* * *

Phrixos had never been introduced into a new class ever, but always imagined it as like being in a zoo, ogled by the other kids and getting shoved right in the middle with the teacher saying that you'd 'fit right in' and everyone would 'make you feel welcome'.

Oh, so blissfully rose tinted.

* * *

Kim was worried for Phrixos. He hadn't seemed that good that morning and she'd seen how uncomfortable situations made him yesterday. She could only hope that he'd be in her class, or who knows what would happen.

She was also the first to hear the door open in French. Turning her head so fast it felt like it was going to dislocate, she saw a familiar SHD poke her head round the door and say

"2-3?"

Miss Parish looked up from her desk, and nodded.

The SHD came in, followed by a familiar Phrixos, who didn't look pleased at all with the situation.

"2-3, this is Jack Caber, a new student here in Greygrove. I trust you will make him feel welcome and part of our school."

That was it. Kim could see that he was just happy to find a seat at the back and breathe. Every pair of eyes were trained on him, but Miss Parish stood up and said

"_Bon, classe, continuons avec notre travail, _hmm?"

She watched them all turn back, all wonder who the tall skinny guy was.

* * *

When the bell went for recess, every student scrambled for the door. French was a dreaded subject, even if there was a new guy.

Kim walked over to Phrixos, hoisted the rucksack on her shoulder and grabbing her coat. He was busy stuffing his books into the recently repaired black bag.

"How are you, then?" she asked.

"Ecstatic." He answered sarcastically and looked up at her. She saw -thankfully- that a small smile was playing on his lips.

"Coming?"

He picked up the bag, nodded and followed Kim out.

"So, do you need no education?" asked the girl, laughing suddenly. He stopped and raised an eyebrow.

"What?"

"Oh, you don't get it." She sighed and rolled her eyes. "Not a Pink Floyd fan I take it."

He still didn't get it. Kim got a little mobile phone out of her pocket and pressed a button. Nothing happened. Taking a pair of headphones, she passed him one.

After a while, a low beat played, and he heard

_We don't need no education, _

_We don't need no though control. _

_No dark sarcasm in the classroom _

_Teacher, leave them kids alone _

_… _

_Hey! Teacher, leave them kids alone!

* * *

_

They listened to it through the corridors, avoiding deftly the bustle of students running back and forth. Books flew from one side to the other and bags lay strewn on the floor and by the lockers. It's chaos, he thought, utter chaos.

They took up a bench outside and Kim turned over to another song.

A cling of coins, a till, what kind of song was this? Before long, a steady beat and a guitar riff cut through the noises.

_Money, get away _

_Get a good job with polay hockey… _

"Polay hockey?" he asked confusedly, to which Kim answered with a chuckle

"Get a good job with good pay and you're okay."

He mouthed an ohand continued to listen

_Money, it's a gas _

_Grab that money with both hands and make a stash _

_New car, caviar, four star daydream _

_Think I'll buy me a football team._

"What?" Phrixos asked, raising a thin black eyebrow.

"Stop doing that!" she said

"Doing…?"

"Raising one eyebrow at me. I hate people who do that."

A short moment of nothing.

"Can you do it?" came his cocky reply.

* * *

"Jack! Where are you, I need your opinion on these blueprints!" cried Mayor through the iron speakerphone. Several nearby Towners covered their ears as a tall thin Skellington strode towards him.

"Blueprints?" asked Jack, taking one and studying it. A ghastly contraption, black and spiky. He liked spiky. Spikes were good.

"Yes Jack. Doctor Finklestein sent them over this morning. They're for some sort of…erm…" he stopped short and took a glance at the sheet.

"What is it?"

He scurried off to find the Doctor to ask that very question.

Jack took this as an opportunity to marvel at his town's newest marvels for the up-coming and marvellous Halloween.

Bat-spiders, good. Bear traps, always needed a few bear traps. The old trick balloons, Jack didn't get too near to them. Weird slimy green gunk, great idea but it didn't smell rotten. Try again.

"Jack!"

The Mayor came pottering over, another bunch of rolled up paper in one hand and a strange type of top hat with bat wings in the other.

He passed the Pumpkin King the papers and promptly tried to open the hat to read it. With a fluster, he swapped them and said

"It's a hat, Jack."

"I can see that, Mayor." He said with a smirk.

"No, no Jack, it's a bat-hat. You see, it's…" he stopped. trying to conjure up a suitable argument. "It's…got wings." He finished lamely and passed Jack the papers. Looking around, Jack placed the hat on the passing Corpse Kid's head and looked at the papers. A startled cry came from beside them, and they looked around to find its source.

Hovering a few feet above them, the Corpse Kid was desperately trying to take the bat-hat off his head, which had stuck itself over his sewn-up eyes and taken flight. The Halloween Towners stopped their trick making and observed the flying kid.

A smile, a genuine smile crossed Jack Skellington's skull, this was going on the list of things to take to the Human World.

"Mayor?" he said dreamily, still staring at the Corpse Kid, who was currently being brought back down to earth by the and Clown.

"Tell the Doctor to make a dozen new bat-hats."

Mayor nodded and hummed the Halloween tune as he went to see Doctor Finklestein again.

"Oh and Mayor?"

He stopped and looked.

"Tell him to make it a baker's dozen?" He added finally. Mayor smiled and continued on his way.

* * *

Jack was back in the study, sat on a comfy chair with Zero at his feet. Today had been good, but there was nothing on Libitina's behalf. She was supposed to contact Jack if she saw Phrixos and watch over him.

He yawned and picked up a book at random from the pile next to the chair. A fairly new one, with a brown leather cover. The title read '_Halloween History_' and described the origins of the humans' Halloween and Halloween Towns former Pumpkin Kings and the like. He flipped through all the pages, ignoring the parts with too much writing and the parts with nothing at all.

"_The human tradition of Halloween (also called Hallowe'en, All Hallows Eve, All Saints' Eve, Samhain, Spooky Day, Snap-Apple Night, Costume Day/Día de los Disfrazes and Pooky Night) is observed by many English-speaking nations, including the USA, Ireland, Scotland, England, Canada, sometimes Australia and New Zealand. It is a mostly cultural holiday with many significances that takes place on October 31st. It is celebrated with activities such as trick-or-treating, bobbing for apples, costume parties, craving jack-o'-lanterns…_"

Imagine. If the Pumpkin King ever told his Halloween Towners that they were making Pooky Night this year, instead of Halloween.


	6. Hello Nurse!

Sorry, no Halloween Town story this time! Besides, I asked Jack what was happening but he was too busy trying to get his holiday ready. So there you go, real busy time there. You should know, you're reading it.

* * *

Kemina woke up suddenly, smacking her head on the low lamp above her bed and swore foully. A book was laid across her chest, and the lamp was still on. She opened her eyes and tried to find what had woken her up. It didn't take long.

He was screaming. Phrixos, on the other side of the room, still half-asleep, but was screaming his head off. Kim jumped out of bed and ran over, not bothering to cover her modesty, wearing nothing but her vest and flimsy underwear.

"Phrixos, Phrixos, wake up!"

He didn't stop at first, but soon the scream died away into whimper. Still with his eyes closed tightly, Phrixos felt her arms around him, hugging him tight. It helped.

"You okay?" he heard, the sound was rather quiet after the harsh noise he'd been making. Of all the stupid questions.

"K…Kim?"

She smiled and nodded, loosening her hug just a little. He was sweating, cold sweat, and clutching the back of his arms firmly. His pale green eyes were fixed on her face, expressionless. After a while, his grip slackened too, and he drew a shaky breath.

"Oh jeez, I'm…"

Phrixos didn't finish before they heard a loud knock on the door. Looking up, Kim realised that the scream had woken everyone up. Crap.

"Kemina! Are you in there? Open the door please!" came a voice, male and familiar.

She walked over and unlocked the door, opening it a touch. Several people were outside, including the voice's owner, Mr Balden, a maths teacher. Presumably, he was in the corridor when Phrixos woke up.

"M'kay." She mumbled, opening the door fully. She glanced over at Phrixos, who had jumped up and sat on the end of the bed. He watched Mr Balden with an expression of nervousness, who said

"What happened?"

He wasn't going to answer, looking over at the door. There must have been 10 kids there, having a good nosy around. So Kim answered for him.

"Nightmare, I think." She said, looking down at her feet. Of all times, the prudence now seemed to come into play. Mr Balden shooed off the remaining students and walked in, offering the bed to Kemina whilst eyeing the boy carefully. The mattress springs creaked loudly as she flopped back onto Phrixos' bed.

"A nightmare? I don't know about you, but I heard that noise from the teachers' lounge. What's up, Jack?" answered the teacher, turning back to Phrixos.

Staying silent, that was one of his newly found tricks. Better to keep you mouth shut than speak and worsen the situation.

Mr Balden straightened up and looked at them both, Phrixos, rigid and white as ivory, and Kim, her red hair a complete mess, complete with entangled pair of glasses.

He frowned and sighed in what seemed to be defeat, but said

"Look, I'm not going to force you, but I'd like you to come with me and see . You know, to be on the safe side." was the school's nurse; she was nice and spoke in a soft tone without rushing anything. He shrugged as if it was no big deal going, but Kim saw Phrixos gulp. Obviously he'd had a bad experience with nurses. Or maybe hospitals in general.

* * *

Ten minutes later, they were dressed again, sitting in the nurse's office. The painted blue walls were rather unfamiliar to Kim, who, hating sport and physical activities, almost never got an injury of any sort. The last time she'd been was last year, when she'd been forced to play football and promptly kicked the ball off a wall and into her own head. The sport teacher was worried for her but amazed at the force Kim had kicked the ball.

Phrixos, meanwhile, was sitting cross-legged on the examining bed, staring into space. She had been watching him for sometime and counted the seconds between every time he blinked, which didn't seem to be very often. The blue jumper he was wearing was too big and slipped off one shoulder, which he didn't bother to put back. She was going to say something to calm him down when from another room, appeared. It seemed that she'd been woken up too, and hovered uncertainly in one corner.

"Now, what's happened here?" she spoke in a flustered but soft voice, Kim had always liked the school nurse and now was no exception. But Phrixos was a completely different kettle of fish.

* * *

"You could have at least protested. Some kind of friend." He murmured, the comment aimed at Kim, who was just getting under the sheets again.

He was talking about his trip to the nurse's office. Over the last hour, he had been prodded and poked, his temperature taken and his blood sugar levels checked. But fortunately for him, they found nothing odd, if they had it would've meant another hour or even another day there.

Kim wasn't ready for a remark like this and she stopped pulling up her soft duvet to blink at him. Phrixos hadn't spoken since his half-apology before the knock on the door. Silent as the grave, pale as death, those were only a few of the morbid expressions that sprang to mind.

"What?"

"You heard." He spat. "After what I showed you, I guessed you'd take a hint that I hate nurses."

This left her stumped. What he'd shown her?

"Showed me what?"

He fixed his dark green gaze on her coolly. His irises swirled like thunderclouds in the lamp light and his skin was a contrast of ebony and ivory from the shadow. In one quick movement, he thrust out his arms and Kim got it. His scars. But pressing for a little more information couldn't hurt could it?

"What's that got to do with the nurse?" Being polite, she avoided looking at his scars again.

A pause. "That was the last time I'd been to a hospital. Bad experience."

Kim thought about leaving it there, but he continued without prompt.

"You did guess how I got them, didn't you?"

"I…I had a hunch." Another silence. "Am I right?"

He didn't answer this time, but looked away with a steely expression.

Kim got up and sat down next to the boy, who still didn't look at her. The only sound was the buzz of heating systems above their heads.

Softly, ever so softly that he almost didn't hear her, Kim said,

"You did them, didn't you?"

Despite his silence and his calm exteirior, Kim knew the answer. She thought about it, about how he acted like a normal 17 year-old. And then about how his mood could change at the blink of an eye, which creeped her out. It was obvious.

Phrixos finally raised his eyes to her face, but she would have preferred if he hadn't had. In those clear green glass eyes, there was turmoil of emotion, misery, anger, regret. This only lasted a few seconds, before they filled with tears, silently.

"Phrix…" she touched his shoulder gently, and he sobbed, tears splashing down his front and cheeks. He flung himself against Kim, who wrapped her arms around him like a protective mother. The sound of him crying echoed through the normally echoless room, maybe it just did that in her head.

"Ki-Kim…I can't…I'm s-sorry…" Phrixos sobbed, teeth gritted, tears still flowing freely.

"Phrix…its okay, its okay-…"

"No, it isn't!" he shouted suddenly, still crying. He broke loose from her hug and treated her to a hard stare, his fists clenched and his jaw set. His eyes shone like green fire, dark and vibrant at the same time.

But, as quickly as he'd tugged away, Phrixos weakened again. This time, his crying was silent, but it was nonetheless heartbreaking for Kim.

* * *

After a while –or maybe hours- , Phrixos woke up somewhere dark and unfamiliar. Bolting upright, he opened his eyes wide, searching for a hint to where he was. Pale walls, white tiled floors, but apart from that, there wasn't enough light to distinguish anything else. When his brain processed this information, he let out a groan and let his head fall back again.

White. He was back in the asylum. But still...

He smiled weakly, feeling a rush of heat cover him completely in the white room, counteracting the coldness on his bare legs and his sweat-moistened hair.

What a great dream.

Feeling with his unusually freed hands, he found something beside the bed where he was laid. A jumper. He clutched at it, and was surprised when it yelped.

"What-…?" came a voice, the jumper's. "Phrixos?"

Kemina. It all came back in a flash.

He'd been taken back to the nurse's office, where Kim had offered to stay the night with him, despite 's doubts.

"You 'kay?" she asked sheepishly, yawning loudly. He nodded and plucked at the lining of his jumper, already fully awake and alert. So much for a dream.

"What time is it?" he asked after a moment of silence.

Kim pressed the light button on her watch, illuminating her face with an eerie blue glow.

"Almost quarter to 4. Jeez, you don't sleep long." She added, smiling. "You were nodding off when we came here but still protesting that nothing was wrong."

"Nothing is wrong." He said stubbornly, ignoring the fact that he'd screamed that it wasn't okay when she'd said so. Kim did too, deciding to keep her big mouth shut for once.

"You…you think I'm crazy don't you?" Phrixos asked, almost whispering. He'd gone back into emotional Phrixos mode, she thought to herself.

"A little. But don't take that as a bad thing, Phrix." She added quickly when he sighed. "Maybe being a bit mad is all it takes to be really cool."

He didn't say anything for a few minutes, thinking that phrase over. "You think I'm cool?"

Kim laughed, she couldn't help it; Phrixos got to her like that.

"Yeah, yeah, you're cool."


	7. Jealousy :: Bad News :: Jack is back

An autumn wind blew a few early-fallen leaves up on the path through the park, which was virtually empty. Apart from one figure, sat on a wooden bench next to the pond.

Phrixos felt the wind tug at his worn scarf around his neck, at his already messy hair. He'd come here to get some space, a bit of peace. Not that he was playing truant, he didn't have another class for almost an hour. Plenty of time.

He sighed, running a slender hand through his hair, thinking about all the things that had happened over the past few days. It seemed like he'd really pissed Kim off for some reason in Chemistry that morning and he still didn't know why. So Phrixos had left school to get some lunch and quiet. Not that he'd eaten the looked up at the empty swings, swinging back and forth in the wind, at the round-about, covered in leaves.

Suddenly, he had a strange feeling, which at first he thought was a mood-swing. But then he realised that it was something different, something eccentric.

"Hello."

At the sound of the voice so close to him, Phrixos jumped out of his skin and seat, and found himself stood up next to the old woman. She was very old, extremely old, and he had a horror of old people.

"Erm…" he started, two things crossing his mind; back away slowly and run. As he could do neither, he chose to stay old woman just stood there, smiling up at him. It was kinda freaky in even the warmest of atmospheres, but in the cold autumn deserted park, it was positively chilling.

"What a nice young man, you are, you are." She said, pronouncing the words strangely. She nodded quickly as she said this, still staring at Phrixos, who had taken to the first suggestion that his brain had said.

"Erm…hi. Uh, do-…do I know you?" he stopped walking backwards and gazed at the old woman, his mind piecing together something that he still hadn't clicked.

"Me? Oh, no, no, no, you don't know me. But, I know you. "

She took a seat on the bench and motioned for him to sit. Phrixos bit his lip a little; she was still a bit weird, even if she had a familiar thing about her.

"You know me?" he asked curiously, sitting down. She nodded again, quicker this time and said,

"Yes, yes, I know you. I've known you since you were a tiny baby, like this, you were." She moved her fingers close together to show him then laughed loudly, making Phrixos jump a little. He adjusted the scarf on is shoulders and thought for a bit.

"You knew my mother?" he asked.

She looked confused for a moment, and then broke into a smile, her face crumpling in on itself, a mass of wrinkles and pale flesh.

"Your mother, Jenna, yes, I knew her. So young." She said, and sighed, lost in what seemed to be a memory.

"But you don't look at all like her, no, no. You look like your father, yes, yes."

The mere word of father made him ever-more alert to their conversation, he glanced at her.

"My-…my dad?"

She looked at him, it seemed to be examining him, his face, it made him blush just a little and look away

"Phrixos."

He told her his name, and waited for hers.

"Phrixos, what a lovely name." she smiled again, looking away from him. "My name is old, so old, Libitina."

Libitina. Now there was a name that didn't ring a bell.

"So…you knew my father?" he repeated, approaching the matter a little more softly this time.

"Your father, you know, I'm not quite sure, Phrixos." This struck him as an odd answer to that question but he said nothing.

"I don't think anyone ever saw your father. But I'll tell you something, yes, something I know."

Phrixos turned to her, ruffling his hair again in eagerness.

"Your mother loved, loves him, and loves him very much."

Libitina had said something then, she wasn't sure what, but she saw him harden and turn back away. The indication of his mother in the present tense, this Libitina didn't know. He was sure of it.

"I-…" he paused, not wanting to sound rude. An idea came to him, and he glanced at his watch. Not that it mattered.

"Look, I've got to go. Sorry and all that, but…" He stood up, and smiled at Libitina.

"Yes, oh yes, don't you worry dear. You wouldn't want to miss class now, would you, Jack?"

He nodded and walked away, putting his cold hands in his pockets. It was only after, once he was sat safely in the warm classroom that it struck him. The woman, Libitina, when he'd gone to leave, she hadn't called him Phrixos.

No she'd called him…

Jack.

* * *

Libitina watched Phrixos go, her black eyes fixed on his face, that defiant and occupied expression forming on his face that reminded her of Jack. She smiled and walked back to the house, ignoring the bitter wind.

* * *

Back in Halloween Town, the annual rush and bustle was in full swing. Towners ran here and there to open all sorts of things, make sure that the bat-hats didn't escape suddenly, putting the finishing touches on yet another October 31st prank. No-one really noticed Libitina shuffling through the middle of it all, making her to the Town Hall slowly and steadily. She could already see Jack, in a meeting with the Mayor and a few other Towners. The Pumpkin King's expression of absolute boredom already visible even from this distance.

"And we'll use the marvellous Black Lagoon Lee-…" said Mayor in a booming voice, ticking numerous items off a large scroll of paper, but stopped when he saw Libitina enter. All of them turned their head, even the spider on Mayor's tie.

"Jack, Jack, and Jack." she said, approaching the group as fast as she could. She stopped before the Pumpkin King, who, even sitting, towered over her.

"What is it?"

"I have news, good news, Jack."

At these words, his skull lit up abruptly and he stood up with a flourish. He made his excuses to the others and headed for his home, cutting a path through the busy Towners.

* * *

"Tea." Was the first thing that Libitina said when they walked in. Much to Jack's dismay.

"Erm…alright." He replied, not wanting to seem inhospitable in front of his messenger. Ten minutes later, they were still sat in his study, Libitina sipping the tea loudly, while he drummed his bony fingers on the wooden desk with impatience.

"Ah, now that is nice tea. Ah, yes, Jack." She said, setting the cup down. Jack started suddenly as if she'd woken him up, and he leaned closer, holding his skull on one hand.

"You had news, I take it." He said, eagerness barely hidden.

"Yes, news, news about the Caber boy. I've seen him, yes, yes."

"You…you've seen him? Well, that's wonderful, simply marvellous! Where is he?" he asked, not bothering to conceal his excitement any longer. He'd been waiting three weeks now; he wasn't planning on waiting any longer.

"Hush, Jack, we need to take things slower. He's still in London."

For a moment, his expression became one of fatigue, but it didn't last long. Libitina took another sip of tea, and said,

"He looks like you, yes, yes, he does."

Jack thought for a moment, imagining Phrixos' face. It was easier said than done to imagine a Skellington in… human. With all flesh and eyes and hair. Gosh, he'd have hair!

"You recognised him?"

"Oh yes." She said, placing her tiny hands in her lap. A subtle smile played at the corners of her lips, in her eyes. "Yes, you can tell, just like that, he's your son, Jack."

A heavy silence formed between them like a brick wall. Jack was lost deep in his thoughts and memories, Libitina thinking more about tea, as she usually did.A son, a human son…was he ever going to get used to the idea? And if he did, what would he do?

"But there is one thing, yes, yes, one tiny little detail, Jack." Libitina muttered with a hint of worry in her voice which made his turn to look at her.

"He…you know that human and Halloween genes are supposed to mix, no, no, it interferes, Jack."

"Interferes?" he asked, frowning.

"Yes, with the mind, it does. And poor Phrixos isn't in the pink of-…of…" she stopped, reaching for the cup again.

"Of what?" Jack said, becoming a little anxious now. He waited until she'd taken the last drink of tea and heard her say,

"He's mad, Jack, he's not at all well, no, no. Poor child."

Although he should have guessed it, he'd been looking up on this kind of thing. On science books, medical books, history books. Of course Halloween and human genes didn't mix; it caused, apparently, split personalities.

"So, he's mad, then?" Jack asked to more himself than Libitina. He sighed rather dejectedly, and rubbed his skull.

He'd find something, he wanted to but what could he do?

* * *

Kim waltzed past the boys toilets, taking the headphones out of her ears as the power in her walkman gave out.

"Damn!" she said tutting and hoisting the bag up further on her shoulder. "Just when it gets to the solo."

A bit further on, she heard something. A sniff. Stopping in her tracks, she turned around and saw someone sat against the lockers, hidden from view. They obviously hadn't seen her, because they continued doing nothing as they had been for some time.

"Hey." She called, taking a step forward. Their head shot up now, the light from the doors revealing a familiar face.

Kim laughed, "Phrix." But stopped dead when she saw something else.

That wasn't Phrixos. It looked like him, but it wasn't.

There was something strange about him, something eerie, something sinister. He stood up and took a step towards Kim, who back away just a little. She could feel the walkman slipping out of her hand, loose.

"Watch out!" he said, reaching out for it, she jumped and let go. It stopped just short of the tiled floor, safely in Phrixos' hands.

"Careful, you'll break-…Kim?" he asked, voice full of concern. Kim had let out the breath she'd been holding, one glance from those light green eyes and she realised how stupid she'd been, it _was_ him.

"I'm 'kay. Sorry." she added, laughing just a little and taking it back. She heard him sniff again, and remembered why she'd looked.

"Phrix, are you okay?" Kim said. He nodded quickly, turning away.

"Yeah, I'm-... I'm okay. I was just…erm…"

Luckily for him, the bell rang above their heads.

"C'mon, let's go." He said, laughing.

* * *

The bustle of students started up again, everyone wanting to get to their classes all at once. Kim had strayed a bit behind Phrixos, who went off didn't mind, people kept looking at her when she was with him. Any girl walking with a boy was obviously seen, as she'd find out soon enough.

"Hey, hey Kim!"

She turned, seeing a girl the same age as her walking up. She recognised her at once, to her displeasure.

"So, Kemina Johan. A little bird told me that there's a new guy, you know. Tall, dark, handsome. The whole thing." She laughed and placed her hands on her jean-covered hips.

"Uh, hey Dhina." Dhina Williams, Greygrove's gossip, drama-queen and cheerleader all rolled into one. The only thing missing was the blonde hair.

"Well? Spill, Kim!" she said, voice full of –fake- excitement.

"Erm…you mean Phrixos?" she asked, she wasn't playing stupid, honest.

Dhina rolled her eyes and said,

"Thanks, Captain Obvious! Everyone's talking about him, you're not gonna be selfish are you?" she laughed again, tossing chestnut brown hair over one shoulder. The corridor was slowly but surely getting less crowded as they stood there.

"So, he's called Phrixos then? Or is it Jack? I've heard a lot of different stuff about this guy." Kim wasn't too sure she liked the way she was talking about him, almost like-…

"C'mon Kim!" she heard Phrixos shout behind her, he tugged on her arm before spotting Dhina.

"Hey." He said simply and continued to coax Kim away.

"The famous Phrixos." She muttered, just loud enough for him to hear. He stopped, and turned to face her.

Even though she was older than Kim and by far taller, Phrixos positively towered over her. This didn't seem to faze Dhina, though, and she kept him under a steady blue gaze.

"Famous?" asked Phrixos, curious.

"Well, yeah. I mean, you're like, subject number one around here."

Something popped into Kim's head and out her lips before she could stop it.

"Talk of the town."

Both of them shot her a look, Kim blushed.

"Yeah... well, anyway." She said before turning back to Phrixos, who wasn't too sure about they way she was looking at him. Dhina flashed him a smile, and Phrixos' green eyes flashed back at her, to Kim's utter horror.

"Well, thanks...err…"

"Dhina." she said, and Kim wasn't surprised that she didn't stick her hand out for him to kiss. It was just like one of those soppy films, but, when she thought that, something turned in her stomach, a strange feeling.

"Right. Well, gotta go." He muttered hastily and took off in the other direction, leaving Kim to give Dhina Williams one backward glance and try to catch up.

* * *

Puffing and panting ten seconds later, they were outside the Literacy room, just as Miss Lake hushed them into the classroom.

"Talk of the town?" he asked quietly, raising an eyebrow. Kim elbowed him for that.

Miss Lake shushed them, and closed the door behind the last of her pupils.

"You'd like them." she added before he took up his last place at the back. Only something had changed today.

Gethin was back. Unfortunately for him –and Phrixos- the only spare seat was next to him. Phrixos' place.

Gethin wasn't going to like this.

* * *

Phrixos walked up and took the seat without a double take under Gethin's hard stare. He didn't say anything but he knew that he'd seen it. Phrixos was taller than him, Kemina could tell by his foul expression. looked at Phrixos, cool and unfazed by the well-built rugby player. That was one thing that he had over him, whereas Phrixos was thin and tall, Gethin was tall and burly, thick. And thick he sure is, Kim said to herself, smiling slightly. He was jealous.

Jealous. That word came to her suddenly. _She_ was jealous. That was what she'd felt when Dhina and Phrixos were talking. She looked back at him now, silent. He raised his eyes and met her gaze with a defiant smile, which made her turn back, blushing. Actually blushing.

God, what was happening?

* * *

"Jeez, he's one character, he is." Said Phrixos, rejoining Kim when they came out.

She mumbled in reply, annoyed at herself. Phrixos took this as annoyance towards him and quietened.

"Kim?" he asked, gathering dignity.

"Yeah?"

"Y'know, this morning…in Chemistry…what'd I do wrong?" he muttered, avoiding a paper ball thrown by someone on the other side of the corridor.

She mouthed her surprised and said,

"Oh yeah, look, Phrix. Sorry 'bout that. It was…" she paused, not really knowing how to phrase it.

Phrixos noticed the silence. "It was what?"

"Well, you know…c'mon you _know,_ Phrixos!"

"No, I don't." he said rather irritatedly. He stopped and Kim had taken a few steps before she stopped too.

"Erm…_women's problems._" She whispered, and giggled unexpectedly. She saw Phrixos raise his eyebrows before it sank in.

"Ah." Was all he said before joining in with her laughter.

"Well, I _am_ a girl, you know."


	8. The House Revisited :: Birdies :: Dolls

"Phrixos!" he heard, turning around. Phrixos caught sight of Libitina coming towards them, and he smiled slightly.

"Erm, Kim, this is Libitina. I...met her at the park a few days ago." he explained to her. Kim was eyeing the old woman rather cautiously, he noticed. "How are you?" he asked Libitina.

"Yes, yes, very well. I came to ask you if you wanted to come for some tea, and you pretty friend here, if she wants." She smiled at Kim, who blushed, her cheeks turning almost as red as her hair.

"Uh, okay." she said, turning to Phrixos who said the same thing. Libitina smiled again and lead them towards her house.

"It's not far, no, no, not far at all." she said as they rounded the corner of the street. She could already see the grey slate roof that towered over all the rest of the neat brick houses in the avenue. Kim was enjoying their walk, their little promenade, but caught a glance of Phrixos who didn't seem to be enjoying himself at all. His green eyes flickered from house to house, fixed on Libitina, then down to the floor.

"Phrix?" she asked, stopping. His head shot up, eyes fixing on her face, and then he chuckled nervously.

"Yeah, I'm just-...I'm..." he swallowed, rubbing the back of his neck anxiously. "I'm fine."

Libitina had stopped too, and was watching the two with a faint expression of amusement.

When they continued on, Kim slipped her hand into his, squeezing just a little. Phrixos looked down at them, and raised an eyebrow at Kim. She blushed again and took it away quickly, which made him laugh, without a hint of worry this time.

"I don't bite, you know."

She looked up into his face and saw his eyes, those emerald green eyes that suddenly locked onto her caramel irises. They both looked away quickly then, smiling nervously.

"Phrixos!" they heard their guide call, they came over. Stood outside her house was the tiny figure of Libitina, and Kim was clearly impressed by its size. It was as tall as their school, but it seemed tall, not just big. It towered over everything, and its imposing size was heightened even more by its monochrome colours. It reminded Kim of the Addam's Family videos that she still watched. It was made up of three levels -or four, because she was sure that it would have a basement- with evenly spaced windows on each floor. She noticed the lavender bushes in the garden and the wrought-iron fence, which was dangerously sharp, she thought.

"No…" They both turned to Phrixos, who was stood impossibly still. His face was pale like milk and his eyes were wide, dark green, his hands limp at his sides like pallid spiders. Those lips were still forming the word no, over and over again.

"Phrixos?" asked Kim, with unmistakeable worry in her voice. Phrixos didn't look at her, let alone seemed to have heard her. She pulled on his arm, saying,

"Phrixos, listen to me, please. Stop it!"

He shook his head and swallowed, throat constricting. He stayed silent despite the strain it was causing.

She turned to Libitina, who seemed to be standing oblivious to his distress.

"Libitina!" she cried now, frantic. What was wrong with him, who'd just been joking a few moments earlier?

Kim pulled on his arm, pulling him down in an attempt to avert his green irises from the house. That was obviously what had made him like this. Was it?

She gasped when she felt his fingers bite painfully into her hand.

"No…no…I don't want to go back!" he said, voice broken and emotionless. Lost in his head, his thoughts. Phrixos didn't hear her call out his name, or feel her try to pry his fingers away. All his attention, his reality was occupied by this house.

Would it still have the blood on the floor? The ripped curtains in the lounge? He'd never know.

Because at that moment, quite unexpectedly for Kim and Libitina, he took off in the other direction as fast as he could. Tears welled up in his eyes, as they did more and more often since he'd left the asylum. His throat burned from the running after a while, his legs ached. Phrixos stopped eventually, outside the park gates. Today, though, it was full of children and mothers playing. He panted and gasped for air. How far had he come from the street?

* * *

"Zero!" said Jack, a little annoyed now. His ghost dog quietened and looked up at him, jack o'lantern nose bright orange. The Pumpkin King sighed and went for the door. Zero had started to bark at the doorbell and he had been in the middle of scouring his library for something, anything on human-Halloween mixes.

"Yes?" he asked, even before he'd opened the door. There stood Doctor Finklestein, carrying a huge pile of old and dusty books on his lap.

"Good evening Jack. A little bird told me that you might want to take a look at these books, here." He took them and examined the first one's cover.

"'Species and races of the Worlds'? But Doctor..."

"Look at the marked pages, Jack. You'll understand." he interrupted him. Jack looked confused for a moment, before flicking through to a page that was separated with a piece of black ribbon.

'Why relations between Worlds shouldn't occur', the chapter was called. The thought came to his skull immediately. _Phrixos._

"But-...but how?" he asked, bewildered at the unexpected aid.

The Doctor smiled and wheeled carefully down the steps towards his lab. Jack recognised the figure that was waiting for him at the bottom of the steps. Long flowing red hair, large beautiful eyes, a tattered patchwork dress covered her hourglass figure. Sally looked up at Jack, however. Another small smile crossed her lips and she followed the Doctor across the Town Square a little shakily.

"Sally." Jack whispered softly. Sighing, he closed the door, books in hand and patted Zero as he passed back upstairs.

His study was bathed in orange light from the setting sun, making his squint at the windows. Setting the books on the table next to his other collection of literature, Jack sank into his chair, rubbing his sockets tiredly. Why could he never get any sleep anymore? There was nothing he could do at the moment, nothing he could think of at least. His Halloween preparations had been put on hold recently; he really should get on with that before. And then maybe, just maybe, something would come to him, and idea.

But for now, he coul-...

Something came to him then, but it wasn't what he hoped. It was about what the Doctor had said earlier.

"A little bird told me that you might want to take a look...a little bird?" muttered Jack, sitting upright in the comfortable chair. He frowned and tapped the table-top with his bony fingers absently.

Who had followed him to the house with Libitina that day? No-one, he had thought, but that obviously wasn't the case. He tried to remember who he'd passed, Mr Hydes, Behemoth, one of the Vampire Brothers...

Sally. She was outside the gate when he was walking up. How could he not have noticed her?

When he finally worked it out, Jack stayed motionless for a few minutes, before walking over to his giant grey fireplace. Old ashes hung to the nearby cobwebs like dew and he smiled slightly, for no reason. Jack paused and looked around for the matches, before shrugging and clicked his fingers. A flame appeared there and he blew into it, setting the various bits of screwed up paper and wood alight in an instant. The room lit up quite quickly and warmed up just as fast. Jack felt something nudge at his side and looked down to find Zero; the ghost dog had huddled up to his master and held something in his mouth. The Pumpkin King reached down for it and saw a rough drawing of a Christmas tree. Smiling openly, Jack stood up and tossed his dog one of his collar-bones to play with.

Just like the Christmas affair, Jack was sure that he'd find a solution to help Phrixos eventually. Whether, like before, it would turn out being worse before it got better.

* * *

Libitina caught sight of Phrixos sitting alone on the park bench they had been at just days earlier. She walked over to him silently and said softly,

"You can run, yes, yes. Run like the wind, Jack."

His head shot up and she noticed red rings around his eyes, where he'd rubbed them.

"Sorry." He said, sniffing. She sat down next to him and smiled up at the dark sky. Thunderclouds were brewing, a storm hung in the air like water vapour.

"One week to Halloween, one week." She murmured to herself. Phrixos glanced at her, and looked back at the spot he had been staring at before. A breeze stirred the leaves that now lay strewn across the paved path, far more than two days ago.

"What are you going to do for Halloween, Jack?" Libitina asked him.

"Why do you keep calling me that?" he snapped. "How do you even know my name?" He spat it with unexpected force, standing up. The old woman looked rather shocked, or thrown by his sudden outburst. She blinked up at him, eyes huge and black as coal.

"You're just like him, you know."

Something in her tone made him soften, listen. He relaxed, muscles loosening up.

"Like-…like who?"

She didn't answer, only gazed up at him absently. It looked like Libitina was miles away.

"My father?" asked Phrixos, sitting back down. She faced him, and for a moment, he thought that she was angry with him. But her face crumpled in on itself and she smiled. "You knew him well, didn't you?"

"Yes, yes, he was a remarkable man. Keen on new experiences, on trying new things. He was a true leader."

"Unlike me, I guess." Mumbled Phrixos, he'd gotten himself into a position with his knees up to his chin and it impaired his speech.

"Hmm?"

"I'm not-…I can't even…" he sighed and muttered, "I'll start again. I don't take to being in charge; I can hardly keep myself under control, let alone others."

"Is that so?" she asked, her eyes shining mischievously "You do have a little admirer though, Phrixos, yes, yes."

He thought about this, even though it was obvious who she meant at once.

"You little friend Kemina, she thinks highly of you, she does. Almost even-…"

"Even what?" he asked, curious. She smiled again and shook her head.

"That's for her to tell, I think. Not my job, no, no, not mine." Her tone was subdued, even sad somehow. Phrixos smiled back, genuinely, then frowned slightly when he realised something.

"So...how come you're not asking me why I ran?"

"Oh Phrixos…do I really need to ask that? Do you want me to ask you why you ran anyway? No, no, I thought not." She added when he didn't reply.

"Not curious?" he asked.

"Not in the slightest."

"…Whatever."

* * *

"Come in." called Kim, replying to the knock on the door. She was busy tending to her pride and joy, strewn across the carpeted room floor.

There were three resin dolls, with jointed arms, legs, hands, feet, everything. They were pale and shone under the sunset-light from the window. Kim was currently taking various items from cardboard boxes, eyes, paints, even delicate false eyelashes, all fit for the dolls. She handled everything with great care, especially the dolls themselves.

"I said come in!" she snapped, annoyed at the interruption in her careful work. She took a paintbrush from one of the boxes and retrieved a bottle of resin from another.

"Hey." She heard from behind her, a voice that she recognised even without having to turn around. Kim put the dolls away into a large box quickly, and stood up.

Phrixos stayed where he was, silent and brooding as he sometimes was. She sighed and placed a hand on his cheek, it seemed so dark against his pale skin.

"Geez, you're freezing, Phrix! Where've you been?" she said, trying to make eye contact with him. His irises were clear green again, not dark in any way, but the pupils were so large in the half-light. He latched onto her caramel eyes, and smiled slightly.

"Sorry." He croaked, mouth dry. He cleared his throat and licked his lips, trying again. "Sorry, Kim. I was scared."

"Of what? The house?"

Phrixos looked back into her eyes; he seemed very child-like at that moment, naïve.

"Yeah."

Kim led him to the bed, her they both sat. He took off the coat he had been wearing and ran a hand through his black messy hair.

"It was-…complicated, actually. It's hard to explain without me going into meltdown, really. I wouldn't want to go through it if I didn't have to."

"Well, you don't need to tell me if you don't want to, y'know. It's alright." She smiled, hoping her reverse psychology trick would work. She really could be a bit pushy at times. He shrugged as if it was no big deal about telling her anyway, but his shoulders slumped and he sighed dejectedly.

"But it's never going to go away, is it?" He sighed again and took a deep breath.

"Okay, I'll say it. But I've got to ask you something, Kim." Phrixos looked up into her eyes again, not looking away this time.

"What Phrixos?"

"You can't repeat this. To anyone, I mean it. You can tell whatever else you like to people, but this is the most important thing that I'm ever going to ask you to do, Kim."

She nodded, slightly distracted by the worried look in his eyes, It was so desperate, scared.

"Then I'll tell you."

Kim put the last of the dolls in their cases and put the box with them in back under her bed. Phrixos was sat on top of it, fingers entwined, white knuckles. She flopped down next to him; he started a little and took his hands apart.

"So…where to start."

"The beginning is a great idea, Phrixos." She quipped, winking despite her sarcastic tone.

He nodded. "But when is the beginning? I have an idea of when but it might be a little too far back…"

"Look, you can tell me the whole ordeal if you think I'll understand better. Whatever."

"Okay. You know how I freak out at times; I act strange, mood-swings, the whole thing. I never used to be like this, it all started when…" he stopped, and took another deep breath. "When my mother died. About a year ago, my mother died of cancer a while after my seventeenth birthday. She didn't tell me until it was far too late, a week before her death actually. I was astonished that she wouldn't have told me, but the worst was that she'd left it too late to do anything about it. Of course, it wasn't her fault, it was that she didn't notice it until it was dangerous and then…it was too late."

He looked blankly at a spot on the floor in front of them and Kim put an arm around his skinny frame. He sniffed and continued.

"I wasn't taken into care because I had my godparents to look after me. But even though someone was there for me, I never really understood that she was gone. Well, I did, but I never really took it in.

Then, a while after, it hit me square in the forehead like a ten-tonne wrecking ball. I lost it, went off the tracks, whatever you want to call it. I had these phases when I stayed silent, vacant, I didn't eat and I hardly slept. I got really ill back then, and I got this personality disorder. Have you heard of schizophrenia?" he asked.

"Not really. I might have."

"It's a split-personality disorder. I feels like I've got two personalities, one where I'm like this, I'm kind of normal, then the other is usually confused, a bit crazy. Only when I'm in my other mood, I get erratic, aggressive, violent. Very violent, I cause self-damage and I can harm others, as you've seen. Well, that's it. Only that's not really it but..."

He leaned back now, rubbing the back of his neck with one hand.

"Well, near enough anyway, isn't it? Where was I…? Ah yes, what happened. Well, to say the least, I was thrown so far that even I had no idea what I was doing anymore. It was under some of my control until one time, Halloween, a while back. I was out with some friends, trying to be as normal as possible. They were younger than me, as I'd stopped school and my old friends had moved onto everything else. It came to around the time when we were supposed to go, but we stayed out and did the normal thing that kids do. We went to an empty house, infamous on the street, and hung out in it, trying to scare the shit out of the others."

Smiling softly, he glanced at Kim to see if she was still following. Judging from her expression, it looked as if Kim was eating up his every word. Hooked.

"I can't remember much after that but I woke up some time later, the others were gone. It took me a while to realise after that that-…"

Phrixos stopped; his eyes seemed to not see the room, but what he was telling her.

"It was horrible Kim. I still can't believe I'd done it."

She put a hand on his shoulder, even though he didn't seem to notice, she felt better doing it. It was what she felt natural to do, help him to stay anchored to where he was, when he was. She hated seeing him so caught up in himself. When he spoke again, Phrixos' voice was quiet but the words struck Kim like hailstones.

"They're dead. And I killed them. I murdered them, two...they were just kids. Barely teenagers."

His gaze dropped like a lead balloon, to his knees. His world went double, reflected in the tears that filled his eyes now. This was so hard, but it was getting so hard to stop now the stone had started rolling.

"And I was locked up. I pleaded my innocence, saying they were crazy, they had no right to do this, they had no evidence. Which of course, they did. Traces of blood in the carpets, on the razorblade I'd had. Their blood. And my blood. They didn't know what to make of it, so they were going to sent me to prison, or wherever I was supposed to go. And I couldn't take it. I flipped."

What seemed like the worst over, Phrixos sat back and crossed his arms, blinked hard and looked at Kim. He wasn't sure she'd seen the tears; he made the point of not brushing them away now.

"And that was Libitina's house, was it? That's why you ran?" she asked, her inquisitive side acting of its own accord. He nodded slightly, turned his head to the ceiling as if could tell the story for him.

"And that's how I was in the asylum. And then Laura came, she helped me get out. I was placid, I think, she didn't think it was human to keep me in there."

"And you think she was wrong?" The words came out of Kim's mouth before she could stop them; two shards of green glass were on her as quick as a flash, his steady gaze never moving from her face.

"What makes you say that?"

"Well-…umm…" she started, blushing slightly. She couldn't escape those eyes of his. "It was just…you seemed as if there was something you wanted to add, but didn't with a sense of dignity, y'know." She stopped the sentence hanging in the air; Phrixos said nothing more but his green eyes didn't move. There was no darkness about them at all, as she noticed when something was up with him. He was just silent, a thoughtful silence that Kim wasn't sure she'd witnessed in him before.

After a while, Phrixos laughed softly, it was one of those laughs that came from your nose, when you couldn't be bothered to open your mouth to laugh in their face. Or if you were Phrixos.

"I don't think my dignity means much to me anymore, Kim." A small but warm smile crept onto his lips; she couldn't help but smile back. He was entirely lovable. Maybe a little strange at times, eccentric in his own eccentric way, but he was lovable.

And, as the cliché goes, she wasn't going to say it out loud, of course.


	9. Bentô :: Black Blobs :: Adrenalin Flight

_Thud thud thud_. Phrixos' feet pattered over the path to the park, he was in a hurry. Unkempt black hair was blown out of his face by the wind, the reminder of the month. October, October. The tuppaware box under his arm slipped slightly, he shifted it back and picked up the pace. He could barely see the corner leading to the park and it was already quarter past…

He stopped abruptly and turned on his heels, frowning. That feeling was there again.

No-one. Nothing. Nothing but the howling wind and the bitter cold that nipped at his exposed , Phrixos walked away, still somewhat thrown by the sense of someone – or something- watching him.

* * *

Libitina wasn't there when he got to the park. He sat at their bench, putting the plastic box on the seat and tapped it with his fingers.

October 29th…

"Afternoon, Phrixos, it's been a while." Said a small voice beside him. The black-haired boy yelped and jumped to his feet, eyes wide. Libitina laughed softly and sat down, her beetle-black eyes settled on the plastic box and stayed there.

"How'd you…?" He looked up at the park, sure he'd not seen anyone there when he'd arrived. His mind might have been playing tricks…

Phrixos sighed and sat down.

"Sorry, didn't see you coming."

She smiled, putting her hand on the plastic box now.

"Yes, yes, you didn't. You jumped out of you skin, poor boy. It's becoming quite a habit, Phrixos, yes, yes."

"I brought you something. Well…I brought me something and made some extra." Flipping the lid off the tuppaware box, the scent of tuna sandwiches and home-made sticky rice hit his nostrils, Phrixos smiled. Libitina's eyes lit up at the sight of it.

"I didn't know what you'd like so…" he took a rice ball out and it pushed at being called a rice "ball", it was more… well, to say the least, trapeze shaped.

"It certainly looks appetizing, yes, yes."

He glanced at Libitina, and what he saw for a second made him almost drop the rice trapeze.

Skin pulled over bone, dead grey eyes, nostrils were two desiccated holes in her face, arms were skeletal, teeth were shards of bone sticking out from black dried out gums…

Phrixos dropped the rice on his trousers and looked down, picking it back up and reshaping it. His green eyes glanced feverishly at her again, but everything was as it should be. Libitina was peering at Phrixos with a strange expression on her face, a mix of inquisitiveness and concern.

"Something wrong?"

He shook his head slightly, raising the rice to his mouth. The taste of it made him retch suddenly and he put it down on the box, looking down. His heart stuck in his throat, as if some invisible hand were pushing it there. Libitina rummaged in her tattered coat beside him; she pushed something under his nose, a bottle of pale greenish liquid.

"Here."

Taking it, Phrixos examined the fluid closer. It had the consistency of water, it flowed in the bottle easily, but the colour, like mint green, it made him unsure whether it was poisonous or not.

"This is... what, exactly?" he raised his eyebrows at Libitina, who smiled in reply.

"It will help the stomach aches, Phrixos. You have to take it, yes, yes."

"Stomach aches?" In all the time he'd known Libitina, he'd never been as unsure of her intentions as he was now. Where had this feeling come from?

From the same place in his head as the feeling of being watched, a part of his mind said.

"Yes, yes, you get stomach aches and you've never had gripe water before? No, no, no."

Phrixos remembered having a bad stomach ache once, when he was little. His mother had given him hot milk and, when he complained more, she'd given him something called gripe water. He remembered it as being sweet and rather plain, but he loved it. Jenna had had to hide it from her son on a few occasions when she'd realised that he'd been taking it out of the cupboard and drinking it. Come to think of it, he'd gone through at least two bottles before she found him.

"Well, yeah but…it's green." Was his contradiction. His simple contradiction, at that.

"Well, it's a different type of gripe water, you know, but it does the same thing. And it's excellent with brandy." She took a rice trapeze and ate it one bite, wrinkled tongue searching for the stray grains of rice stuck to her bottom lip. All that doubt had gone from Phrixos' mind as soon as they came, even if the thought of someone as old as Libitina drinking brandy didn't.

"And those aches, yes, yes, they'll be back."

"How do you know so much on me?" he asked now, mustering as much bluntness as he dared into that question. He knew he'd asked it before, but he felt like he'd never got the straight answer he'd expected from such an easy question. Or, so it seemed to him. Libitina gazed up at him with those black eyes of her; they seemed to him now as if they could wile the truth out of even the most corrupt and deceitful of people.

"I've known you since you were a lad, Jack."

He looked at his knees, that matter popping into his head that was already crammed full of questions. How did she know his name was Jack? The answer she'd given just now seemed to fit the bill…but he still wasn't sure. The one thing she was sure of was that he'd asked that question before, and she had talked about his father. Almost like a change of subject. Besides, Phrixos was sure that he'd remember a face like her's if he'd been under those beetle-black eyes all his life.

"So how come you didn't know my dad? He must have been there sometime in my life, no?"

He'd always feared that question, which he always felt was going to be met by the same answer.

_No, Jack, you're the bastard child._

_It was a one-night stand, child, don't fuss yourself with dreams of your father and eat up your greens, that's a good boy._

He'd grown up on remarks like that, which was why Libitina's shocked him just a little.

"I never said I didn't, no, no. I was telling you myself that I knew the man, he was the leader, remember? It's alright, child, y'see, it comes with the old age." He did remember now, only vaguely, as he was rather cold and forgetful at the best of times. Except when it came to what other people said about him, the sly remarks that he'd pick up on. They were useful for other days, when you needed back-up.

Libitina now seemed to be eying up the flask he'd brought, her intricate sense of smell picking up the rich, bitter smell of... tea.

"Say, lad, that wouldn't be tea would it? Only I'm gasping for a drop of cha…"

Phrixos reasoned it was a small price to pay, the time she drank the hot tea with a content expression, it was a small price to pay for what she could tell him.

Libitina smacked her lips and -to his ears- it sounded like someone being hit with a wet fish.

"Ah. That was good. Now you, child, you cook and you make tea like your mother, sensibly and exquisitely, I must add. Now, what was it you wanted to ask me?"

Taken a little aback by this, Phrixos didn't answer for a moment, but searched for the words to the question that came to mind. Unfortunately, nothing came except:

"I don't feel too good."

And it was true. Now he had to the time to concentrate on himself, he found his stomach didn't seem to be sitting right. He went to say something, but the world grew dark and dizzy in front of him. Managing a quiet groan before he hit the floor, Phrixos just wished he'd told Kim where he was going this morning.

* * *

"Phrixos…can you hear me?"

The voice was cool and authorative in some way, although he couldn't place exactly why. It sounded like the sort of voice that could have men trembling at its feet, or could croon babies to sleep. Phrixos frowned. Why was he so warm? He must be inside…But did it matter? That voice was talking again, talking to him.

"…Everything I'd imagined…in all honesty…no it cou-….And you gave him the water? Good..."

Ah. So maybe it wasn't talking to him, more about him.

Phrixos put a hand to his eyes, checking that they were open, they weren't. When he opened them, a black blob was trained on his face. Like a large piece of coal. Or a black hole. And how the hell did he know it was looking at him?

The black blob was pulled sharply into focus, like on a camera. It became two black blobs, looking out from a bone-white face, with two smaller holes underneath and a mouth of uneven yellow teeth. There were bared in what their owner classed as an excited grin. Phrixos was staring up into the face of Death. Or, so he thought at first, having been brought up on Terry Pratchett books that he bit and tore to pieces, much to his mother's dislike.

"Shit!!" He shouted, falling backwards off the chair. Why was he in a chair?

The skull pulled back, an expression of dismay was plastered over it now, but it seemed more at home there than the smile. It was almost comical, the circumstances to one side.

"What did he say?" the skull asked, turning to someone next to him. His neck cracked audibly as he bent it to look at the tiny figure below. A familiar tiny figure, who regarding Phrixos with an amused air.

"Libi-…" Phrixos started, then stopped when he looked back up at the skull, then down at her. What in God's name was going on!?

"He's cussing, Jack. Now please don't be sticking your bone-head in his face, y'see, he's rather panicky, yes, yes." She ambled over shakily and placed a shrivelled hand on his forehead. Dark green eyes flew to it; tears were starting in them now. He was starting to see things again…

Phrixos remembered one time in the asylum, one he'd rather forget, in all honesty. He'd been asleep and when he woke up, there were people there. Just…there. As if they'd always been there and he'd never noticed them at didn't remember much about them, only that they went away after time and they never talked, never seemed to notice him at all, didn't eat, sleep or anything. He'd tried talking to them, apprehensively at first. Then, even if they wouldn't – or couldn't – answer back, he chatted away to them, welcoming the company, however impolite as it might seem. Once they'd sorted out his medication, the strange people disappeared for good. He didn't miss them, really.

It felt like that now. The only thing his body provided as options was either a) go into shock or b) fall asleep and pretend nothing abnormal had occurred. His body opted for the second option.

* * *

His next wake-up call was much gentler. And by far less shock-inducing.

"Is he okay?" asked Kim, glancing from the unconscious Phrixos to the hovering Libitina.

"Yes, yes, he just banged his head on the bench, methinks. It's funny what the mind does when it's shaken, you know." Not to mention when it sees things it wished it hadn't, she added to herself.

Phrixos moaned slightly and sat bolt up before anyone had the chance to push him down. He'd grown used to waking like that.

"Reaper Man!" was the first thing out of his mouth; it seemed like an acceptable thing to say to Libitina, an unconscious question. It was something along the lines of "What the fuck happened?!"

Kim hushed him, putting two hands on his shoulders, which he looked down at.

"Phrix, it's okay. You bumped your head and Li-…Litibina?"

"Libitina, dear."

"Yeah, she brought you here." Kim tilted her head up, admiring the old house. It really was quite interesting and stunning, even if you couldn't move without spiders nesting in your hair when you stopped for breath from the dust you kicked up. It was just old and Libitina was old. It worked out.

Far from calming him, this made Phrixos jump to his feet, almost knocking her over in his rush to get out of there. Adrenalin drove his head now, his limbs, where had that come from? His pupils were wide, his mouth turned dry.

He had to get out of this place!

"Phrixos! What…" Kim's shout was drowned out by his heart, pumping in his ears and his throat like a death-toll gone mad. It made him think of black holes for eyes and white horses and big black swishing cloaks. And scythes. He hated the scythes. He'd been running around the house for a while, and seemed to be coming out in the same place all the time. Desperation overcame his panic and then tiredness set in.

His knees felt like lead, they collapsed in and sent him crashing to the floor in a heap. His spidery long legs pulled instinctively up to his chin, his arms wrapped around them and curled himself into a tight ball until his joints cracked. Blood filled his mouth: he'd bitten his tongue in the adrenalin-fuelled experience. Phrixos just wanted to get out of here, to fall asleep and wake up in his bed, at the beginning of this bright, windy, cold Saturday on the 29th of October.

Halloween was coming.

And Jack Skellington wasn't sure he was prepared for it


	10. Slate :: Red :: TrickorTreat!

Okay, okay. So I screwed up. Everyone disappears off the face of the earth for a year, sometimes :) But I'm back, in a college I love, with people I love, doing what I love, which is ignore the teachers and write every single minute of the day, between using my brand-spanking new sex-god of a phone. Yes, I have changed a bit, but Phrixos and Kim are still the same old love-birds they've always been. With a little dash of scarlet hair thrown in for good mesure. ;)

With the utmost apologies,

-Sam the Shapeshifter

* * *

"Well, well, Jack."

Phrixos clenched his fingers on the paper covering on the nurse's bed and closed his eyes. Not her.

Laura sat down opposite him, clipboard balanced on one knee as she watched the boy from behind a pair of rim-less glasses.  
"I didn't think I'd be seeing you so soon."

"Likewise." He murmured. Over the course of the past month or so, he had changed. Not just physically, going from a fragile boy with a look of constant terror hidden in his eyes to a young man with broad shoulders and a lithe but fairly _costaud_ frame from the sports he participated in; but in his aura, he was different. He no longer stood the same, his head held slightly higher than everybody else, looking down at them constantly, regardless of his attitude and his desired impression. Phrixos looked down and pitied the world around him for being so-... so-... Pitiful.

"So, what're these?" She gestured to the Caber boy's arms with the end of the pencil and raised her preened eyebrows pensively, with all the authority she could muster. It wasn't nearly enough, since the jade in Phrixos' eyes to burst into irritated flame.

"It's called self-harming. You call yourself a social worker, Laura?"

Laura blinked, taken-aback.

"Self-... harming?"

Jack's son folded his arms over his black t-shirt and looked away, the gauze pads covering the various patches on his arms stood almost cream against his pale skin.

Self-harming.

* * *

Kim was the first thing he saw once he stepped out of the office. He blinked and shook his head, walked straight past her, despite her best objections.

"Phrix!" She called after him as he rounded the corner to the staircase, then ran after him, bag slapping against her thigh. A few people turned to look, mostly at the wonder that was Phrixos Caber than the short red-head running after him.

* * *

Phrixos slammed the door to the roof behind him with difficulty. He felt a rush of adrenalin, pounding in his ears, for being on the roof, out in the air, breaking a rule or four, not to mention the melodrama of the situation.

Then again, he just wanted the air.

The dark-haired young man walked slowly over to the edge, hands on the handrail nowhere near as tightly as he should have held on. The wind whipped at his clothes and his hair, stung his eyes and blurred his vision. Down below, it was empty. The wind churned his hair into a mess, as always, but this time it meant it. There was something pulling there, in the cold October air, puling at the very edges of his bones, down into the abyss. Phrixos stepped up onto the ledge and looked out at what he could see. Miles and miles of various coloured roofs jumped at him, shades of grey and black and slate. Just slate. The sky, dyed a faded blue tinged with grey, barely seemed to be able to sustain the weak grey light from the autumn sun. Down below, a girl from his art class looked up momentarily, to see the Caber boy perched on the edge, looking out at the horizon.

She didn't move for a moment, until Phrixos' gaze lowered, his lips parted, tongue dry and painfully from the sprint up the stairs and the harsh air. She nudged her friend, who looked up. Phrixos ignored their gaping stares, watching the slow crowd gather like wasps, like ants, like moths. Insects, they were nothing but insects. The wind blew ebony locks into his face, eyes fixed on the dwindling urban horizon again. Insects. Insects meant to be crushed.

* * *

Jack lifted the last of the ropes from the mirror, entwined with ornate snakes that hissed and slithered silently along the frame. The mirror was just about as old as he was, and put up in the Town Hall every Halloween since he could remember. When people passed in front of it, their features in it became distorted, bestial, wretched. Everyone roared with joy at the prospect of being transformed by this mirror, the tradition went on that every year, the new-comers of Halloween Town stood in front of the mirror as it twisted and ruined their reflections, then watched as it returned to normal. It was tradition, nothing in it, just superstition and cobwebs.

This year, only one would stand there in front of it, shoulders wrapped with various Halloween Towner hands, holding them there, eager grins on their faces, observing, waiting. Red stood up from the pews, urged on by various Towners, shook hair from his face. Red didn't have his name for nothing. Dark crimson strands framed his features, skin blanched grey and dotted with stitch marks, around his mouths, across one eye, down the prominent lines of his neck. His eyes were a violent indigo-black, reflecting the light like beetles from the candles suspended from the ceiling beams by chains, held in copper basins drowned with wax. The young Towner stepped up to the creaking floorboards and looked at himself in the mirror. All he saw for the moment was the crowd around him, and himself, as normal as... well, as normal as he could imagine himself. Then, it changed. The features turned elongated, first downwards like a serpent, eyes a blood crimson like his hair, locks long and swept back from his forehead. Gashes sprouted at the corners of his mouth, turning his parted lips into a maniacal grin. The monsters and ghouls around him roared with mirth, jaws wide open, howling with laughter. Red smirked slightly, stomach empty, watching his features flicker and shimmer in the reflected glass, serpentine and menacing.

Then it morphed, once again, this time back to a humanoid form, but his skin turned milk-white, eyes returning to ebony, but so did his hair. It grew out, into a long mane like before, into his eyes, cheekbones pushing through the skin, gashes and stitches disappearing into his mouth and eye-sockets, leaving his complexion flawless and smooth, gleaming like bone in the candle-light. It wasn't him. The Towners around him looked at each other, no longer laughing. Their eyes had grown wide, disconcerted by this metamorphose, stricken by the strangeness of this new image. It was so different from what they were used to, clear, alien, human. It was unsettling. Jack narrowed his sockets at the image, then focused them on the young Towner once more. Stood still, fists by his sides, fixed on the image before him. A sound rose in the Hall, like a low growl, resonating deep in the rib-cages - of those that still had one - of the party members, then growing into a scream. The mirror was screaming, the snakes' gaping mouths wide and exposing the ivory fangs, glittering in steel candlelight. The wailing continued, a few Towners scattering, Red took a step back into the Wolfman's hairy chest, eyes wide. It died away again, disappearing all together before the mirror faded into blackness, stray leaves swirling around in the hall like autumn butterflies.

The crowd was silent, save for the muted whispering, murmuring, consulting each other in disbelief. The doors lay open, and many departed long before Jack stepped down from his perch in the balconies and went over to the solitary figure that was Red, still stood where he backed away. He folded his arms, eyes on the mirror, skull layered with nonchalance, trained nonchalance. Red looked up to him, like a small child looks up to a teacher or a grandparent. The Pumpkin King's gaze didn't move, expression not wavering, then he spoke.

"I think it's time to go finish getting ready."

* * *

Two children screamed into the darkness. Phrixos kicked his feet against the pavement, sat on the curb, watching his laces. Hands shoved into his pockets, curled up on himself, he listened to the laughter and joyful cries of the young children in the block, watching the light creep across the tarmac as each door opened and closed as the young took their fill of sugar and crept back into the shadows of the evening. He looked up, neck exposing itself to the night, long and pale and flawless in the moonlight. Full, it shone down at him like a grin, leaving shadows behind the bollard beside him, by the cars, on the walls; night shadows. He rose to his feet, head suddenly filled with restlessness and languor, ringing with lamplight and darkness inebriation.

The park was deserted, except for a young couple on the swings, entwined in a moonlit embrace. He passed them with little interest, hands curled into his pockets, hair in his eyes, a slight frown the only flaw in his features. He watched his own shadow walk alongside him from the moon, frightfully tall, sharp angled, slightly stooped and crawling across the grass like a spider. He shuddered, wind biting at his cheeks, night creeping its tendrils into his chest. Phrixos could feel the paving pounding beneath his sneakers with every step he took, pounding into his heart-beat like the rhythm of a ritual drum. It was Halloween, after all.

* * *

Across rooftops, Towners scattered, pattering along the tiling much to the inhabitants displeasure. Anyone could become jumpy on Halloween, after all.

Jack followed in quick pursuit, but soon headed off down an alley, dropping to the floor like a silent ghost, his stride long and as balanced as a trained figure-skater. A solitary moth-eaten grey kitten peered fearfully at the looming king from behind a dump-ster, offering a quiet meow as some sort of greeting before making itself scarce with a half-hearted hiss. He ignored it, concentrating on keeping his memory going, like clock-work, well-oiled clockwork.

_"Jack." Katia smiled, taking his hands. They were cold, maybe from working in the abattoir all day, maybe from the cold October wind. The tall man smiled, black hair blown into his face, scarf hanging languidly from his pale neck. The couple stood in the whirling leaves, watching each other as the trees slowly lost their greenery around them, waiting for something to break the thick silence._

_Katia looked down, smile fading slightly now; Jack frowned._

_"What's wrong?" he asked, almost worriedly._

_"I came here to tell you something important, Jack."_

_The silence hung between them froze suddenly, into the pit of Jack's stomach, into his expression and his eyes. Green, like summer grass, like clover, like old pennies. The young woman looked back up at him, her own copper hair pulled back into a loose bunch at the base of her neck, eyes bright and caramel-brown, cheeks flushed red with the cold and dotted with faded freckles. She smiled again, a smile that made the ice in his stomach only worsen, the kind of smile that comes just before the thing you don't want to hear._

_"You're going to be a father."_

Jack rounded the corner, heading towards that park, of course that park. Of all nights, Jack Skellington's son would have to be drawn there. The place of his conception, the place that his father had passed onto him by genetics, and -of course- this night. It was in his blood.

The king of October 31st carried on down the road, practically invisible - who would want to see a full-grown possessed skeleton at night, after all?He rounded the street towards the park, a street-light snuffed out as he passed – out of servility – then flickered back into life as he passed out of sight, buzzing softly with an amber glow.

* * *

Phrixos shuddered, glancing around him. The wind was picking up, tearing at his cheeks and drawing tears in his eyes. The cold encircled him like a vulture, jabbing at the unprotected skin and leaving goosebumps. He was cold and tired and hungry. And yet, still stood there, as if transfixed by the moon and quiet and the seemingly distant sounds of the city.

Every now and again, something moved in the bushes near him, but the sound of the howling trees drowned it out. Phrixos' eyes were wide, silent, voice trapped in his throat. His heart pounded like a manic butterfly in his ears, lips vibrating with his heart-beat and stomach empty that taunted at his quasi-panic like baying dogs. The darkness tugged at his heart and his lungs, stirring them into a maniacal terror like thunder clouds.

Finally, white surrounded him, hushing the fear into quiet controlled nonchalance, a state of mind that Phrixos found himself in more and more often.

"Hello?" he shouted, his voice sounding terribly small in his own ears. The darkness seemed to grin but stayed silent.

* * *

Kim called the mobile number registered under the small name "Phrix " on her phone once again, pressing the receiver to her ear and sighing. Ignoring the crowrd around her firmly, she took a few strides away and leant back against the wall. The tone in her ear finally cut off to the answer phone, Phrixos' voice rang out in her head.

"Hey, this is Phrixos Caber. Can't get to the phone at the mo', leave me a message and I'll get back to ya."

"Phrixos, s'me again. Where the hell are you, kid?" She smiled slightly despite herself and the cold. "Call me when you get this. Bye."

She slid the phone back down into its compact form and looked at the blue glare of the screen in the night. Time for trick-or-treating.


	11. Sally :: Boogies Boys :: La Fin

First of all, it's been a pleasure writing this. Every word I typed, every phrase that formed in my head, every awful moment of dead-lock where I struggled to type anything at all. I loved it. This story is finally mine, encased finally in the image that I'd hoped for, when the idea first came to me. I'm even proud of it.  
Secondly, this end is what you make of it. When a story is read, it's not the author's choice, how it ends. This site wouldn't be here if the author had control over the ending of a story. How you interpret it is up to you. Make Phrixos what you wish.

Thirdly, I want to thank everyone who's taken the time to read, the time to think, the time to review. It's been a wonderful ride.

-Ex-Sam the Shapeshiter, furthermore E White.

* * *

Red kicked the bottom of the fountain in the Town square dejectedly, head hung. He watched the Halloween festivities continue without him, as they had the past three years. Sighing softly, he pushed up onto the side and clambered easily up to sit at the head of the statue, looking up at the harvest moon, red and ominous in the sky. He smiled crookedly – he had no choice – and listened to the faint strains of music in the chilly air.

* * *

The looming shadow flickered across the backdrop of green grass before Phrixos' eyes. The boy was sat at the base of a thick oak, branches almost bare and what was left hung solitary and blackening on gnarled branches. His knees pulled up to his chest, Phrixos held them tight with frozen white fingers, rocking softly on his feet, eyes wide and panicky, pale green. The shadow stopped, seemed to ask itself something and drew closer to the terrified figure. He flinched, closing his eyes tight, murmuring absently through gritted teeth.

"Phrixos?"

"Go away... go away... just go away..." he continued to mutter, cradling himself like a spider facing death. The shadow had filled his vision with black now and Phrixos could do nothing but unravel slightly and face it. A mass of moon crowded behind a spindly frame, blackened by the luminescent orb hanging in the star-less sky. He felt his throat freeze into a tight painful knot, his muscles fastening into aching masses, his chest tightening into an aching chasm of fear. Stars exploded in front of his eyes.

"Phrixos?" the voice called again.

The voice.

Before he could properly react, an instinctual yell threw itself from Phrixos' throat, tearing at his airway like a desperate animal. He knew that voice. Hurtling himself against the figure, he leapt to his feet, entangling from his own limbs and breaking into a run. His heart screamed at him and those aching muscles seized up, almost making him trip, but the panic-stricken adrenalin kept tight hold of his system, driving it on through the night like clock-work.

* * *

Sally had already spotted Jack in the park, saw him approach the boy from afar. She stood beneath the branches of the weeping willow, hidden in the boughs and speckled with wan moonlight, small hands clasped together at the skirt of her worn dress, pulled tight so that the stitching almost gave way. Her imitation grin hung pitiably low, lips slightly parted at the Halloween King's dismay, large eyes filled with sympathy for the desolate skeleton. She ducked from under the arches of willow and made her way over. The moon filled the whole of the lawn, bathed it and them both in its glow. She took his bony wrist gently, almost as if he were the fragile rag-doll in her place. He hardly acknowledged her, only moved his head slightly then sighed in his depleted heart-breaking fashion.

"Sally." He said simply.

"That was Phrixos, wasn't it?" Sally asked softly, her voice beautifully frail in the cold October air. Jack looked at her finally, his sockets showing no more emotion than the silent dead trees around them. She lowered her gaze, worried of his reaction. Another long sigh and he placed both skinny limbs around her shoulder, hugged as tight as he dared.

* * *

"Excuse me, Miss?"

Kim looked up with a smile, accompanied by her select few friends. It soon faded at the sight of her interrogator.

He smiled wider, shook auburn hair from his hair absently.

"Did you say Phrixos?" She blinked slightly, observing him, too shocked for a reply just yet.

He was tall, not as tall as Phrixos was – but then again, that _would_ be a feat. His hair was thick, and deep red-auburn, that stuck out at odd and familiar angles. His skin was pale, almost a bluish tone from the light in the square, and his eyes were narrow and black-lined, the irises a captivating shade of gold. He was wearing a long-sleeved skinny t-shirt, striped red and black and pushed up to his elbows and - she remembered as a strange after-thought – red trousers. His smile was wide but uncomfortable, like a Cheshire Cat's grin. She smiled feebly back.

"Um, yes... why, you know him?" Kemina reasoned that he was obviously talking about the same Phrixos, as it was unlikely that any two people in the whole of London had that name. The stranger – about two years older than him, Kim supposed in the back of her mind – laughed, a laugh that was as cool as the smile. She shivered despite herself and zipped her parka up a notch, looking elsewhere.

"I guess you could say that. More like an acquaintance, actually."

"Nothing new there..." she grumbled, then caught herself and blushed slightly. "Sorry, it's just..."

"He's not very friendly." He cut into her excuse like a hot knife, eyes still trained on Kim firmly. She flushed hot under his eyes. "Am I right?"

"You know him, then, at least. Wouldn't happen to know where the git is? I'm freezing my ass off out here for him." She flipped the phone back down and huddled into her coat, trying to avoid those eyes.

"I can't say I do. But I'll be sure to give you the heads up if I do, Miss...?"

"Kim. Just Kim." She smiled feebly and nodded slightly. The young man smiled his feline grin and walked away, sparing her a backwards glance. At the pavement's edge on the other side of the square were two other svelte silhouettes, smoke rising from one. He seemed to give the crouched figure a soft kick and nodded back at her. In the harsh light from the street lamps, Kim could barely make out one as female – the stood one, with big curled most probably black hair, clothed in pale purple and green stripes – and the other – the smoking one, paler than even the red-haired one, dressed in black – as most probably male, and then as the shortest of the three as they – he? - got to their feet. Feeling three pairs of eyes on her, Kim blushed furiously and turned away.

Before she started walking, three voices sang out in shrill laughter, shrieks in the harsh October night.

* * *

The kitten from before jumped to its feet as a clatter of dustbins roared in the alley. Phrixos skidded back from the wall, holding one side of his face. Hot blood ran through his fingers and down the back of his hand, he coughed weakly and removed it, feeling the cold spear through the wound like ice. Sniffing, he rose to his feet and quickly regretted it. Pain ran in a spasm through his neck, clearing his head out in a white wave as he felt his limbs shatter back against the cobblestones. The black finally overtook the white, but, even as he lost consciousness, Phrixos heard something, faintly, on the corner of his hearing. Soft strains of music and running water.

* * *

Red jumped down from the fountain edge with a start, eyes wide, mouth half-open. The splash died down to a slosh of water from the well beneath the statue, leaving the overflowed water to drip quietly down onto the paved spiralling walk-way. Nothing moved, not even Red's chest. He didn't even blink, listening for anything else to disturb the atmosphere in the sullen centre of Halloween Town. The Towner had almost relaxed again when it happened.

A skeletal hand rose through the water and grabbed at the edge of the fountain, green liquid pouring from between the bones in it, bleached white. An arm followed it, then a shoulder, then...

Red watched as the boy coughed, pulling himself fully out of the water and dropping to his knees on the path. He coughed up some of the pale liquid and hung his head, black hair soaked. Red's eyes flickered to his arm, the same one that had pulled himself out of the well. Perfectly fleshy, which surprised him, and perfectly human, which terrified him. The boy lifted his head and looked at him through sodden ebony locks. Red swallowed the words on his tongue and felt his skin prickle, the first feeling he'd had since he could remember. Two eyes, black like onyx, fixed on him, burning with an intense flame that made the boy seem suddenly inhuman and cold.

"I'll go get the Doctor." Red murmured, making off in a stumbling run.

* * *

Phrixos Caber closed his eyes into black. His hands slid from the knot, the last of his energy leaving the heavy dead limbs, the weak embrace of death finally dragging him under.

* * *

Kemina Johan nursed the coffee in her hands, sat in the room at the boarding school, eyes on the television. Her friend, Ingrid, ran her cold hand around her shoulder again, cradling her in a half-hearted hug, a sympathetic and hurt half-smile on her face. The girl didn't react, merely, cuddled a little more into herself, listening to the report again in her mind. The calendar on the wall showed October 31st, but the date on her open phone read the 2nd of November, 14:23. Kim sniffed, glanced at it and back.

"And that's all we have time for, but we'll be back after Hollyoaks with another news update." the reporter said, nodding to the camera absently. The gaping hole that was waiting to eat up Kim's insides laughed at the futility of the idea and sucked her a little further in, leaving them cold and uncomfortable.

"I'm sorry, Kim, I just thought you had to know..." Ingrid started, but a sharp sniff from the auburn-haired girl stopped her short. She shook her head and picked her phone up.

"It's a mistake. He'll be calling soon."

"Kemina..."

"Ingrid, it's a mistake." She insisted, with the hard coldness of denial.

The girl sighed and stood up, took the cold coffee from Kim's hands and made an excuse before leaving. She didn't answer, only turned the TV channel to another news broadcast.

"-and back to you, Melody."

"Thanks, Jonathan." The news-reader turned to face the camera and her faint smile turned to a trained expression of nonchalance, almost regret. Kemina's insides took another step towards nausea.

"The body of a teenager was found in the early hours of yesterday morning, in the Brookes Park in South-East London near Backlesbury Drive. The boy, a male aged between 17 and 19, was found hanged in the woods near the play area of the public park at 3 am after an anonymous call was made to the local police stating that a body had been found there, no more information was given. He was identified as Jack Caber, a student at a local high school in the area, and was said to have long-running yet improving mental health problems; he was estimated to have died an hour before the authorities received the call.

"Police have stated the death as suicide, with no suspicious circumstances, and no further investigation will be carried out."

The television set flickered grey as Kim pressed the red button, running a hand through her short hair. The air had caught in her chest, making her next breath shaky and fragile, laced with tears.

The windows were open on both sides, bringing in the cold November breeze and, on the other side of the room, Phrixos' bag lay open, his clothes folded, his bed untouched.


End file.
